NEWSFLASH! It’s only been 24 hours since Oprah Winfrey announced she was investing in Weight Watchers and stock prices for the weight loss plan have been rising ever since!
Winfrey purchased a 10% stake in Weight Watchers YESTERDAY for a whopping $43.2 million, and she’s almost doubled her investment so far!
Details below…
Since news of Oprah’s investment, stock shares for Weight Watchers are soaring!
According to reports, soon after Oprah’s announcement, her $43 million investment turned into a $70 million windfall in just one day!
The big winner is Winfrey herself. Her 10% stake in Weight Watchers is now worth some $110 million. Her two day paper profit? Also about $110 million. That?s right. In addition to the 10% stake Winfrey bought on Tuesday for $43.2 million, the company also awarded Winfrey an option to purchase 3.5 million shares for $6.79 each, which was the price the stock closed at on Friday afternoon. Winfrey will now have to make sure Weight Watchers meets the high expectations that investors are placing on it. She can?t sell any of her Weight Watchers stock for two years and can?t unload the entire position for five years.
The other big winner here this week is Ray Debbane, the chairman of Weight Watchers who has controlled the company since 1999. Debbane?s New York money management firm, Invus, controls a majority of Weight Watchers? stock through its Artal Group. Invus has already collected nearly $4 billion in cash from its Weight Watchers investment through the years. But Invus? stake in Weight Watchers had diminished in value in recent years. Invus? stake in Weight Watchers, however, has increased in value by about $340 million in the last two days.
Bravo Oprah!!!
Photos via Instagram